1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to means for preventing children from gaining access to enclosures; more particularly, it relates to fastening devices for installation upon conventional cabinets or enclosures.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The curiosity of children and its potentially dangerous consequences requires foresight and care on the part of all concerned adults. Childhood poisoning ranks prominently among those accidents which constitute the greatest threat to the physical security of the small child. It has been recognized that such accidents can be prevented, or at least reduced in number, by keeping dangerous substances securely stored.
Security from the hands and actions of children differs from that involved when one is considering adults. Distinctions in intelligence, curiosity, and manual dexterity are not truly discriminatory between the adult and the child. On the other hand, one can generally rely upon the fact that children are smaller than adults and have both shorter hand spans and shorter arm reach. This has led to the storage of items on higher shelves for example. One also finds a selfhelp arrangement wherein locks are inserted on cabinets and the keys placed in a remote or secret place.
The inventor's prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,519,299 discusses this problem extensively and discloses a particular type of safety lock for containers wherein the hand span of an adult is required to effect release of a principle catch means while an auxiliary catch release is operated simultaneously. Other devices have been proposed wherein, for example, a plurality of release catches are disposed on a container in such a manner as to require either manual dexterity or hand spans that are beyond the scope of children and yet within the scope of the adult population.